A Quarterlife Odyssey in New England

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Orpheum Theatre

Every day, I check the marquee of the Orpheum Theatre on my way to work. Whose tour bus will be blocking my door this week, I wonder? But for the last few days, I looked up with an extra smile because I was actually going to see the band whose name was displayed – it was time for me to have some FUN.

It was surreal to actually be inside the theater for the first time – it felt like walking into Mary Poppins’s bag, like “how could this large space possibly fit in the downtown Boston that I know?” The opener was underwhelming, the beer was $13, but the seats were good and FUN. was amazing. They rocked the house, even if they did play a little too much new stuff for my fellow fans’ taste – it’s rare to find a band that sounds as solid in person as in the studio. They also brought the Boston charm for encore #1 (photo courtesy of the lovely Katie Catano).

(c) Katie Catano

My favorite part was just how much they enjoyed playing, and their newfound fame. When they held their mics to the audience to let us sing “SO WE SET THE WORLD ON FIRE, WE CAN BURN BRIGHTER…” the looks on their faces were of mild disbelief and sheer joy. This is my absolute favorite part of live music – seeing the face of an artist who clearly is still wondering “What did I do to deserve this, to get all these people to pay ME to sing to them, and to have people who not only like my words and tunes… they love them so much that they know them by heart?” If that isn’t the point of getting famous in the first place, I don’t know what is.

Here’s their megahit – trust me when I say it’s even better in person.

About me:

I love my life in Boston.

I am:
- a runner
- a budget traveler
- a bookworm
- an eternal optimist
- trying to make a difference in the world